Oh My Darling Clementine - The Nursery Rhyme Collections

The Nursery Rhymes Collections 1-4 contain a total of 277 children's songs. Each double CD album showcases the highest quality children's music ever recorded with a total playing time in excess of 10 hours!

Oh My Darling Clementine (Audio Sample and Lyrics)

In a cavern, in a canyon,
Excavating for a mine
Dwelt a miner forty niner,
And his daughter Clementine

Drove she ducklings to the water
Ev'ry morning just at nine,
Hit her foot against a splinter,
Fell into the foaming brine.
.
Ruby lips above the water,
Blowing bubbles, soft and fine,
But, alas, I was no swimmer,
So I lost my Clementine.

Origin and background

This is not an English but an American song. It came about in the USA in the second half of the 19th century, possible authors are Percy Montrose and Barker Bradford. Propably the song was based on another Folksong, (Down by the River lived a Maiden) or on a song taken from the Spanish culture. The theory can't be proved because the tune of song in question is quite different (Romance del Conde Olinos o Niño). Nevertheless there is a certain likelyhood for a Hispanien origin because of the geographical hints given in the song: "Miner forty niner" (lived a miner forty niner/ with his daughter Clementine) refers to the generation of gold diggers who came to California in 1849 to dig for gold. The map on the right shows the areas in question. Around these places lived many Mexicans indeed. The name "forty niners" refers to the fact that according to newspaper articles of that time gold diggers invaded California all of a sudden in the year 1849.

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